Oilers notebook: Playoff rivals, McDavid and Reinhart named to Canada's Olympic team; Kane needs to step up in Hyman's absence
Edmonton Oilers ' captain Connor McDavid, of course, headlined the first six players named to the 2026 Canadian Olympic team along with mentor Sidney Crosby, Norris trophy winner Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Brayden Point and Florida Panthers' rival Sam Reinhart.
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It'll be the first time McDavid has played in the Olympics in his 10 NHL seasons.
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'Incredibly honoured to represent my country at the biggest sporting event in the world,' said McDavid, who did get to play at the 4Nations Face-off in February against the United States, Sweden and Finland, so he got a taste of best-on-best, but without the Russians, who won't be taking part in the Olympics in Italy, either.
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'You think of the Canadian players that can be named to that Olympic team, and to be selected again (after the 4Nations), it means a lot, obviously,' he said.
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But, that's then, and this is now, before Game 6 against Panthers.
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'We're looking forward at what we have right in front of us. That's a heckuva opportunity to go and win a (Stanley Cup Final) game,' said McDavid.
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McDavid's Oilers sidekick Leon Draisaitl, who'll likely wear the C in Italy for Germany, was a slam-dunk on their first six selections. So was forward Tim Stutzle and defenceman Moritz Seider. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer, Lukas Reichel and Florida's centre Nico Sturm, an extra for Panthers, were the others.
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Reinhart is part of the Panthers top line with captain Aleksander Barkov (selected for Finnish Olympic team), tasked with trying to limit McDavid's damage in the Final.
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But, Reinhart, who has played 311 games over the past three seasons with regular-season (246 games) and all the playoff contests with Panthers in their third straight Cup Final, was a teammate of McDavid at the 4 Nations, too.
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What did he learn about McDavid, the teammate?
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'His speed speaks for itself. I don't know if I'm ever going to get there, so there was not much I picked up from that standpoint,' said Reinhart, with a smirk. 'But to be able to see that first-hand, we always joke that even stepping on the ice for practice, he's going faster than anyone two seconds from being on the ice. Faster than I've ever gone in my life. Stuff like that is cool to see.
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'You also appreciate the level of work that he puts in to be able to do that on a daily basis, and just the competitive level he has, that's pretty neat to see as well.'
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With Zach Hyman sorely missed because of his wrist surgery, the Oilers were counting on Evander Kane to provide some goals and assists in the Final. But the only place he's been on the stats sheet, apart from one game, is penalties. Clearly they need more from Kane, who was hobbled in last year's Final with his hernia issues. But he's healthy now, and yet has one foot in coach Kris Knoblauch's doghouse as a fourth-liner in Game 5.
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Global News
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- Global News
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Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I'm not surprised that he's having the success that he is.' For Lee, the wrestling background has allowed him to control fights on the ground more effectively while also having a framework to cut weight once he begins fighting more opponents within his planned weight class of 170 to 175 pounds. Calling himself the 'most ducked professional MMA fighter,' he said it's been a struggle to find opponents who want to go up against his wrestling background. 'With wrestling you just compete against whoever shows up,' said Lee. 'You go to the national tournament and you just sign up, whoever is in your bracket you got to go against them and you can't say no. In MMA, guys can say no and then they'll get a different opponent that's easier. 'I had a lot of problems with that earlier in my career. 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2 hours ago
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Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
The Province
3 hours ago
- The Province
Canada swim star Summer McIntosh primed to take worlds by storm
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SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors McIntosh won three gold medals at the Paris Olympics last year and then broke three world records in a breathtaking performance at the Canadian trials in June. The teenager is the first swimmer to set world records in three different individual events since Michael Phelps did it on the way to his glittering eight-gold haul at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 'Absolutely wild,' McIntosh said of the accomplishment in an interview with Canadian broadcaster CBC. Then she promptly pointed to a litany of things she could improve on in each race, saying the self-criticism is part of her mission to keep testing the boundaries of her sport. 'I don't think there is such a thing as a perfect race, at least I haven't done it yet,' she said ahead of the world championships in Singapore starting on Sunday. Essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'There's room for more and that's what keeps me going. And I'm also still so young, I have so much more to achieve and I know I can get so much stronger.' That competitive spirit runs deep in the McIntosh family. Her mother Jill competed at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics in swimming and older sister Brooke is a top pairs figure skater who won bronze in 2022 at the world junior championships. 'We're very competitive. This is really in our blood,' Brooke once said. – Wanting more – McIntosh's rapid journey to the pinnacle of swimming has taken her from Canada to Florida, where she trained with the Sarasota Sharks from 2022 and through the Paris Games. After the world championships she will begin training with Phelps's mentor Bob Bowman in Texas, as she builds toward the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In the meantime she has been training since January with French coach Fred Vergnoux and his group in Antibes, crediting his contribution to 'the best meet of my career' despite the relatively brief association. 'I've gone way faster than I ever could have imagined,' she said. At the Canadian trials in Victoria she smashed the 400m freestyle world record with a time of 3min 54.18sec, regaining a mark she had lost to Australian Ariarne Titmus. She also broke the decade-old 200m individual medley world mark and lowered her own 400m medley world record. In between she threatened Katie Ledecky's latest 800m free world mark on the way to the third-fastest time in history. She also clocked the second-fastest 200m butterfly ever, edging toward the record set by China's Liu Zige in 2009. McIntosh launched her Olympic career in 2021 in Tokyo, where at 14 she was the youngest member of the Canadian team. She didn't win a medal but in Paris last summer she took gold in the 200m butterfly, 200m medley and 400m medley, and claimed silver in the 400m free. In Singapore she's expanding her program to include the 800m free and another mouthwatering showdown with Ledecky — one of the swimmers she idolized as a youngster. Now that she has established herself among swimming's elite, McIntosh has no trouble finding new motivation. 'I always want more,' she said. Vancouver Canucks Vancouver Canucks Soccer Vancouver Canucks Sports
